VIA PROCEDIMENTAL Proceso Abreviado

This chapter discusses the involvement of children and young people as participants in research and gives an account of the research methodology used for the study. The first section is a general discussion on why children and young people should be and are capable of being involved in social research. The second section discusses previous methodologies which have been implemented by researchers studying children and young people online. The final section is a description of the methodology employed in the present study.

Research with children

Children and young people are active and creative social agents who not only contribute to the production of adult societies but also construct or produce their own ‘unique children’s cultures’ (Corsaro, 2005, p3). Childhood is understood by sociologists as a socially constructed period or aspect of society similar to aspects such as class or other age groups. For society, it is a permanent and static structure which is ever present regardless of the diversity of its members and the continuous change in nature and conception throughout history. For the children themselves it is a temporary period in their lives which they must progress through. Viewing childhood as a structural aspect of society acknowledges that children are a part of society from their birth rather than a separate entity awaiting transition to adulthood (Corsaro, 2005).

Sociocultural theorists such as Rogoff (1995, 1998) have developed the theoretical work of Vygotsky in order to emphasise children’s involvement in sociocultural

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activities, suggesting that in order to understand children’s involvement they must be studied through ‘the community, the interpersonal, and the individual’ together as collective activities rather than from the perspective of adults or from a single activity. Social researchers must see children’s social development (socialisation) as not only the internalisation of adult skills and knowledge - children’s communal activities; their methods and abilities for negotiating, sharing and creating cultures with both each other and with adults should also be investigated. They must be seen as collectively participating in society rather than awaiting adulthood (Rogoff, 1995, 1998; Corsaro, 2005).

There has been a development of interest in research on childhood and involving children which has resulted in a number of studies on children and young people using a variety of research methods. The main change, however, has been a move from research on children to research with children, the main aim of which is to capture the opinions, perspectives and voices of children and young people on a number of different issues, eliminating the dependency on adults to represent children. This has resulted in the adaption and refining of traditional methods to better suit the lives of children and young people who are now viewed as social actors in their own rights (Corsaro, 2005).

There are some key insights from the sociology of childhood that are helpful for the present study. Research on childhood and children’s experiences has traditionally been carried out using observational methods rather than participatory methods or has been qualitative and involved parents, carers and teachers and any other adults involved with children and young people as reliable informants for information gathering (Lobe et al. 2009). This method of data gathering is limited because children’s perspectives may differ from adults’ interpretations. However, this situation is changing as researchers

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attempt to find ways in which to include the child as an ‘active research participant’ rather than a ‘passive research object’ (Lobe et al. 2009 p34).

Lobe et al. (2009) believed that this new child-centred approach to research was a positive step forward. By placing the child at the centre of the data gathering process researchers were not only giving children a voice and taking seriously what was being said they were also acknowledging that children, like adults, were capable of being both competent and reflective when reporting their own experiences. The authors were, however, quick to highlight that using a child-centred approach to research demands sensitivity to ethical issues (Lobe et al., 2009). Taking a child-centred approach to research is a view which is supported by other researchers who suggested that children and young people have clear views of their experiences, and were both willing and able to discuss their perceptions (Lobe et al., 2009; Woolfson et al., 2010).

Conducting research with children involves facing additional ethical questions to those used in research with adults (Thomas and O’Kane, 1998, 2000; Murray, 2000; Lobe et

al., 2009; Woolfson et al., 2010). Thomas and O’Kane (1998) argued that in order to

increase the validity, reliability and ethical acceptability of research with children researchers needed to develop a methodology which gave those children involved some control over the research process and methods used. By allowing and enabling children to participate on their own terms researchers could even out or eliminate any power imbalance between adult researcher and child participant; an issue which was not so easily rectified between children and important adults in their lives (for example parents or carers who may prevent a child’s full participation in research). Children are likely to raise their own concerns or questions which may be as important to enquire about as those issues brought by the researcher; a child’s own understanding of a situation can be as valid as any other (Thomas and O’Kane, 1998, 2000).

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Thomas and O’Kane put their views into practice by carrying out research with children between the ages of 8 and 12 years who were being looked after by local authorities in England and Wales. The children involved in this research suggested that they were continually faced with the situation in which they were never listened to with the same attention that adults expected to receive. The authors suggested that using participatory techniques in their research reduced the power imbalances between adult and child and that the children appeared to appreciate being given the opportunity to discuss their ideas and listen to each other’s views, even if they did not necessarily agree with each other. They suggest that children became excluded from decision-making processes because they were seen as lacking competence and/or understanding when really their views were being sought in a way that prevented them from using their competence. Thomas and O’Kane conclude that ‘The children we saw demonstrated impressive

abilities to articulate their views and experiences’ (p345).

It is important however to acknowledge that whilst children and young people are now becoming classed as social actors who are capable of affecting (as well as being affected by) their surrounding environment and are fully able to participate in research they are also capable of and just as entitled to refuse to participate in research (Murray 2000, 2005). Like Thomas and O’Kane, Murray acknowledged the power imbalances evident between adults and children and young people by highlighting that in the majority of cases researchers were only able to contact children and young people after consent had been provided by parents, carers or gatekeepers who agreed to allow the children or young people to participate. She found limited evidence of cases where children and young people were approached directly (based on her review in 2004 of the Quality Protects Bibliographic Database). Murray’s evidence also supported Thomas and O’Kane’s suggestions regarding participatory research increasing the

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likelihood of children and young people participating in research. The problem, according to Murray, was that current debates surrounding children and young people’s participation were based on ‘concepts, models and theories relevant to adults rather

than young people’ (p15). Murray’s concern was that whilst the UK was developing a

system which encouraged children and young people to participate in major decisions affecting them this encouragement and involvement was focused solely on those involved in the welfare systems, whereas all other children were not encouraged to consider participation as their right (either in research or decision-making).

Cossar et al. (2011) carried out qualitative and exploratory interviews and day workshops with 26 children and young people aged between 6-17 years investigating their opinion on child protection services. Whilst only a small sample size was used, limiting the generalisability of the findings, results suggested that children and young people wished to be taken seriously, did not wish to be kept in the dark, did not appreciate adults making assumptions about their thoughts and feelings and wished to be given help only when they wanted or really needed it.

Similarly, a paper produced by Her Majesty’s Inspectorate of Education (HMIE) in 2011 suggested that children and young people were more than willing to participate in helping meet their educational needs. Through the use of focus groups, observation, and attendance at meetings with children and young people a number of factors were highlighted which would aid their participation. Suggestions included providing papers which were accessible to children and young people; making children and young people aware of what to expect; providing evidence that adults were listening; providing explanations of information which did not make sense to children and young people; creating a comfortable environment and asking children and young people for their views about possible decisions.

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Finally, Lobe et al. (2009) suggested that research involving children’s use and experiences of digital devices should be evaluated against the child’s level of understanding of digital devices, their knowledge and interest in these devices and their location in the social world. They believed that children were and should be treated as ‘active and conscious media users’ (p36). When researching children’s online media use and experiences it was therefore important to consider the wording of any questions used as children may use differing terms from adults and it was crucial to seek insight into a child’s own perspectives. Lobe et al. argued it was now becoming apparent that the online risks which were of concern to children (such as bullying and viruses) were very different from those of concern to adults (such as pornography and violence). Therefore, when conducting research into the risks faced by, and experienced by, children when online it was vital that the researcher did not impose adult concerns on the child and produce findings which failed to discover the child’s own concerns. The research carried out in the study reported in this thesis therefore left several questions open so that respondents could include what they believed to be something they may be at risk from when using the internet.

Children’s involvement in research relating to the online environment

The following section is a discussion of the research methods used in the findings discussed in Chapter One, highlighting that whilst children and young people are becoming more involved and included in research there is still room for improvement and that their participation is still largely influenced by adult presence.

Previous research on the online environment which included children and young people as participants has involved qualitative, quantitative and mixed method approaches. Numerous methods have been utilised by researchers such as Livingstone and

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colleagues (1997; 2008; 2009; 2010; 2010; 2010; 2011; 2011; 2012) when researching children and young people’s use of the internet including open-ended interviews, focus groups, in-depth interviews, survey questionnaires, diaries and cross country comparisons. Their research typically involved children and young people between the ages of 6-17 years, however, parents and teachers were also involved in the research; for example interviews with children and young people took place in their home where parents or carers were present. Whilst providing valuable information on the use of new forms of media within the lives of young people, the involvement of parents and teachers may have influenced the responses provided by young people. Livingstone’s most recent work for example, involved face-to-face surveys of 25, 000 9 to 16 year olds and their parents across 25 countries. The presence of parents during these surveys may have had an impact on the information provided by the children and young people who may not have disclosed the same information they would have if there were no parents present (Livingstone and colleagues 2008; 2009; 2010; 2010; 2011; 2012).

The Department for Children, Schools and Families also interviewed parents as part of their research which again may have had an impact on the type of information gathered from the children and young people. Their research with children and young people was also quantitative in nature which would have limited the data available regarding the participants’ beliefs, opinions and attitudes towards the internet (Synovate UK Ltd, 2009). Likewise research carried out by Ofcom and the UK Council for Child Internet Safety involved the use of quantitative data (2009, 2010). Again, rather than just involving children and young people in their research parents and carers were also involved. It is, however, unclear as to whether the parents were present when the young people were participating. This makes it difficult to assess whether or not there was an

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adult influence on the responses provided by those children and young people who participated in the research.

Quantitative data was gathered by both ARK (2009, 2010) and Phippen (2009) who included children and young people in their research. Whilst this research shows a move away from adult participants to children and young people as participants the research does have some limitations. Both pieces of research provide invaluable information regarding children and young people’s use of and participation in online activities. The use of quantitative methods, however, prevents the data from providing any qualitative information on the thoughts and experiences of young people when accessing and participating in online activities. In addition whilst providing a clear account of the type of activities children and young people were participating in, they do not provide any clear details on the reasons as to why they participate in these activities. Quantitative surveys were also implemented by Mitchel et al. (2001), Peter

et al. (2005), Well’s and Mitchell (2008) and the UK Safer Internet Centre (2013) who

all examined children and young people’s perspectives on a range of online issues (discussed in Chapter One).

Burn and Willet (2004) conducted research which evaluated teaching materials and included both pupils and teachers. It was a small sample, and information on the methodology used was limited, however, it did highlight that researchers were beginning to acknowledge the importance of involving children and young people in the design of safety materials and training programmes. July 2008 saw the launching of the first International Youth Advisory Congress (IYAC) which, as part of the CEOP, involved over 140 youth delegates between the ages of 14 and 17 from 19 countries and aimed to give a voice to young people in relation to their safety online. In addition ‘ThinkUKnow’ (TUK) was developed as a program to reduce the harm caused by

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offenders who seek to abuse children and young people online. These developments can be seen as an attempt to involve children and young people in research by providing them with the ability to participate without the influence of any adult presence. The inclusion of children as participants without the presence of adults is further reflected in research by Davidson, Martelozzo and Lorenze (2009) who conducted focus groups, surveys and face-to-face interviews with a number of children and young people between the ages of 11 and 16 years.

Further examples of research including children as the main participants include studies by Scott (2011) and May-Cahal et al. (2012). Both pieces of research included children and young people and both were based on interactive research. Research activities were designed to be age appropriate and included workshops and online chats. They also include children and young people from a variety of backgrounds such as, pupils from secondary schools in England, young Roma travellers, and young people living with disabilities. Researchers acknowledged the importance of including children and young people in research.

The above is a sample of previous research which has involved children and young people in research. Researchers are increasingly aware of the importance of young people’s participation in research and that they are more than capable of fully participating and contributing to research. Changes are therefore taking place which are promoting an increase in the inclusion of young people in research using a variety of different methods. Finding research methods which are suitable for addressing the research question carried out and are also suitable for the young people involved in the research can be difficult but it is a balance which many researchers are attempting to achieve.

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Methodology employed in the present study

Aim

The overall aim of this research was to gain a greater understanding of children and young people’s thoughts and opinions on protection and security when using the internet, in order to develop a more detailed understanding of the risks of grooming faced by children and young people whilst using the internet. Such knowledge could provide practitioners and policy makers with an evidence-based account of how internet related technology is being used by children and young people. The literature review indicated a gap in information on the views of young people and therefore this study aimed to address that. The methods allowed for the collection of quantitative and qualitative data which focused on the views of children and young people aged 10 – 17 years of age. As it was the intention of this research to partly examine ‘the

interpretation of the world by its participants’ it can be seen as being set in the

interpretivist paradigm (Bryman, 2008:366).

It was acknowledged from the beginning that no causal link would be sought or established between children and young people’s opinions relating to internet use and the likelihood of them being groomed by a potential abuser. It was, instead, the aim of this research to place the interpretation of the participants in a social scientific frame (Bryman, 2008). Children and young people’s opinions of protection and security on the internet would be placed within the framework of internet grooming and internet child sexual abuse.

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Research question

The overarching research question was:

What are children and young peoples’ views about the risks they face on the internet and how can they be used to help protect them from being groomed by dangerous adults?

The following questions were used to shape the collection of data on the views of children and young people:

1. Where, with what, and with whom do children and young people access the internet?

2. What are their views on engaging in risky behaviour and being exposed to risk from others?

3. What would affect their willingness to report potentially dangerous incidents?

4. What are their views regarding personal information on the internet; do they believe it is safer to give out personal details or to keep this type of information hidden?

5. What are children and young people’s views about whether and how they need to be protected from dangerous adults when using internet communication tools?

6. What are the implications for protecting children and young people from dangerous adults and the risk of being groomed?

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Research methodology

This study is based on a survey approach which gathers both qualitative and quantitative data.

A survey was used in order to gather data from a large sample of young people, of varying ages, from all areas of Scotland and was identified as the most appropriate way to address the research questions. Using the survey approach for this study was